Man Who Bought RM6,400 iPhone Online Receives Air-Filled Bags & Wooden Block Instead
While there has been no conclusive evidence on the matter, it is believed that the package was tampered with when being delivered to the buyer.
By Wayne Garreth — 17 Jan 2023, 12:21 PM
A 37-year-old Singaporean man who purchased an iPhone on the online shopping website, Shopee, has been duped after receiving a package that contained — well, not the iPhone
Identifying himself simply as Yu, the man spoke to Shin Min Daily News and explained the sequence of events that led to his defective purchase.
Beginning his tale, the man stated that though he would typically purchase Apple products directly from authorised retailers, he made the decision to purchase the latest iPhone 14 Pro Max (256GB) from Shopee. His reasoning was based on the fact that the platform offered him a SGD8 (approximately RM26) voucher and cashback. An added factor for his decision was the phone having been sold out in many retail outlets he had visited.
After checking out the seller's ratings and reviews, Yu decided that they were decent enough for him to place an order that was scheduled to arrive on 31 December 2022. When the day came, Yu mentioned that the delivery driver quickly dropped off the parcel, took a picture, and left the place.
Opening the box, Yu's heart sank when he found no iPhone 14 Pro Max, but instead a collection of junk items — four air-inflated plastic bags and a wooden cube to be specific.
The package in question received by Yu, with the four air-inflated plastic bags and wooden cube.
Image via ZaobaoActing quickly, Yu immediately contacted Shopee's customer service facility to put in a request for a refund, per the officer's advise.
However, the request was reportedly rejected by the platform.
According to reasons provided by the platform, the parcel had already "been delivered to the address indicated in the order," and that "the payment has been released to the seller."
After carefully examining the package, Yu deciphered that the tape used to seal the box had been torn off before being reapplied on its exterior.
Suspecting that someone may have tampered with the package while it was in transit, Yu decided to make a police report.
Speaking on his experience with Shin Min, Yu stated, "As a platform that claims to pay back double if the item received was not as advertised, Shopee should have provided its customers with stronger guarantees."
Adding his personal take, Yu also said he believes that sellers should ensure courier services are reliable before using them. In any circumstance where the item lost is in transit, buyers should not have to bear the cost of damages.
Moving forward, Yu was forthright in his decision to revert to purchasing valuable items from authorised retail stores.
Despite the issue, Shopee has responded on the matter with what they plan to do moving forward to rectify the situation
In a comment to Singaporean media outlet, Mothership, Shopee maintained that the incident has since been resolved.
"We are in contact with the affected Shopee user and have apologised to him for this distressing experience. We have also processed a full refund, which he opted for over a replacement phone," said a representative of the platform.
They also stipulated that they will be conducting thorough internal investigations into the matter to prevent such incidents from occurring again.
